This morning the Daily Telegraph splashed on a story with the headline "Labour in 'secret deal' to force out Speaker". The key allegation was this:
Some Scottish Labour insiders believe that the Speaker could be willing to signal his intention to step down at the next election in exchange for an assurance that his son, Paul Martin, would be Labour's candidate in his Glasgow seat.
It seemed a bit odd, not least because Paul Martin is already a member of the Scottish parliament and since devolution the attraction of becoming an MP has declined considerably, but the Telegraph is a serious paper and you never know.
Anyway, now we do. The Times's website is carrying a story quoting sources close to Paul Martin saying categorically he does not want to inherit his father's seat. One source told the Times:
You have to make choices in life and Paul has made his. He has a young family and wants to see them every day, something he couldn't do if he was at Westminster … He has got no ambition to go to Westminster. There is no way he is going to London.
